Qualcomm Claims Apple is Still Violating Chinese Court Order Despite Software Update to Remove Patented Features

Qualcomm on December 10 scored a victory in its ongoing legal battle with Apple after winning an import ban on the iPhone 6s through the iPhone X.

The ban was enacted after a Chinese court said that the older iPhones infringe on two of Qualcomm’s patents related to resizing and reformatting photos for wallpaper and switching between apps.

After the court’s ruling, Apple said that the patented features were software related rather than hardware related, and that it would release a software update for iPhone users in China to remove any infringing functionality.

Apple Seeking to Shift iPhone Production to Pegatron to Offset Chinese Qualcomm Ban

Apple is reportedly looking to shift production of older iPhones to Taiwanese supplier Pegatron in an effort to avoid losing billions in revenue as a result of its patent dispute with Qualcomm.

Earlier this week, Qualcomm was granted an import ban on the iPhone 6s through iPhone X in China after the court found those devices violated two Qualcomm patents.

However, according to documents seen by Nikkei Asian Review, smartphones produced by Pegatron are exempt from the ban because the Taiwanese supplier paid license fees for the contested software, whereas rival iPhone assemblers Foxconn and Wistron did not.

Qualcomm plans to file for an injunction on the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR in China, which would theoretically prevent the sale of those devices in the country, a lawyer for the company told the Financial Times today.

Earlier this week, a Chinese court granted an injunction on older iPhone 6s through iPhone X models in China after it ruled that those devices violated two Qualcomm patents, and the chipmaker now plans to assert those same patents against the latest iPhones amid an escalating legal battle with Apple.

The first Qualcomm patent reportedly enables users to „adjust and reformat the size and appearance of photos,“ while the second [...]

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14. Dezember 2018

Apple Warns Chinese iPhone Ban Would Force a Settlement With Qualcomm, Result in ‚Irreparable Harm‘ to Apple and Others

In a court filing related to the ongoing dispute with Qualcomm that has resulted in a partial ban on iPhone sales in China, Apple this week warned that upholding the ban would cause „truly irreparable harm“ to Apple, other companies, and consumers if Apple is forced to withdraw its devices from the market, according to Bloomberg.

The ban would cost Apple millions of dollars a day and affect both the Chinese government and consumers, the company added, noting it has created 5 million jobs in China across the supply chain and third-party software developers.

The Chinese government „may suffer hundreds of thousands of tax losses“ from [...]